I looked back at my status screen, eyes scanning over the seemingly endless list of skills I had. Each name, each line of text popped up as if mocking me. Over 80 skills, and yet none of them seemed to truly solve my biggest problem at the moment—moving between floors!
I let out a sigh, my mind looping the same question over and over again: "How can I make more effective use of the [Teleport] skill?"
Right now, [Teleport] only allowed for short-range movement, and each use consumed an enormous amount of SP. If I kept going like this, I would be drained before accomplishing anything significant. Even with [Auto SP Recovery], my regeneration simply couldn't keep up with the drain.
I needed to fix this immediately—otherwise, reaching the higher floors would remain a distant dream.
Alright, analyze things slowly.
The weaknesses of [Teleport] boiled down to three main issues: limited range, excessive SP consumption, and instability. I had to deal with each one step by step.
First was the range. At its current level, the skill could only send me a few hundred meters at most—a pitiful distance compared to the massive scale of each dungeon floor. And those few hundred meters only applied to places I could directly observe.
According to the skill's description, I could teleport to any location so long as I still remembered its image in my mind. If I combined that with [Heaven Eye]—which allowed me to see through almost anything—then teleporting anywhere shouldn't be a problem. But the farther the distance, the more SP it consumed.
I once tried teleporting from Floor 20 back to Floor 15. That was only five floors apart, yet it drained nearly three-quarters of my SP. At this rate, my leveling efficiency would drop significantly if I had to constantly wait for SP to recover.
In short, I still didn't have any skill that could increase SP or HP as effectively as it could for MP. I also tried searching the shop, but maybe due to my lack of Skill Points, it didn't show anything particularly useful.
Well, I'd worry about that later. Right now, what I needed was to develop a teleportation system that reduced SP consumption—then everything would be fine.
Still, while [Heaven Eye] could expand my vision and help pinpoint distant locations, vision alone wasn't enough. I needed accuracy to ensure I didn't teleport to the wrong location—or worse, get stuck in space.
Hmph… Maybe the two skills [Accuracy] and [Focus] could help in this situation.
Next…
Next…
I couldn't think of anything else!
Feeling completely helpless, I leaned back and relaxed a bit inside the [Virtual World]. Beside me, Suzu was quietly reading a thick book about spatial skills. Ever since she learned the detailed mechanics of [Teleport], I had asked her to help, and she had been digging into all sorts of resources. Because of that, I couldn't just sit around doing nothing either.
I resumed brainstorming for solutions—but my mind remained completely blank.
Seina was already busy dealing with the Inference System, so I didn't want to bother her any further. That one system alone had her tearing her hair out.
Suzu.
I spoke up, breaking the silence in the room.
"What do you think I should do to improve my use of [Teleport]? It consumes too much SP, and the instability is still an issue."
Suzu looked up, calm eyes meeting mine. "You're still having trouble with the SP consumption and dizziness from teleporting?"
"The dizziness isn't a problem. But the farther I teleport, the more SP it consumes. When I tried going from Floor 20 to Floor 15, my SP was nearly depleted. If this keeps up, my climbing efficiency will drop significantly. Not to mention, the teleportation still feels unstable. I'm worried I might end up at the wrong destination."
Hearing that, Suzu paused for a moment and closed her book. "This issue isn't entirely unsolvable, but you'll need to prepare a few things. First, regarding the SP consumption—you could improve that through [Auto SP Recovery] and other stamina-related support skills. It seems like you haven't really focused on upgrading those yet."
Yeah, I checked the skill shop, but I don't have enough Skill Points to buy the ones I need.
I sighed.
I guess I should try farming more points before upgrading.
Looking over my skills now, the only two SP-related ones were [Auto SP Recovery] and [Endurance], and both were just barely passable for me.
Maybe I should focus on improving my stats first.
Suzu nodded in agreement. "That's a reasonable option, but you should also think of a way to acquire more suitable skills."
Hmm…
"The teleportation point you mentioned still can't be done right now. You're missing a lot of things. The two main problems are skills and SP. Just having [Teleport] alone won't cut it. But why are you trying to create that system in the first place? You can already teleport anywhere as long as you remember the place."
I know. But the main reason I want to develop a teleportation system is to reduce SP consumption. Even if I find a way to improve my SP stat later, there's no guarantee it'll be enough to let me teleport freely anywhere I want.
"Alright. How many Skill Points do you have left?" Suzu asked.
740.
Suzu's expression suddenly turned serious.
I know I'm not rich, but it's not like I'm completely broke either… right?
"Search for two skills in the shop: [Anchor] and [Fusion]."
I did as instructed. It didn't take long before I found both skills Suzu mentioned. [Anchor] cost 400 Skill Points, while [Fusion] was priced at 300 Skill Points.
That's… just within my budget.
"There might be better options out there, but for now, these are the only ones we can rely on," Suzu said with a smile.
It's fine. I know you've done your best.
I patted Suzu on the shoulder to reassure her.
Then, I bought both skills because I trusted her.
<<400 Skill Points used. Acquired skill [Anchor Lv1]>>
<<300 Skill Points used. Acquired skill [Fusion Lv1]>>
Let's check what they do.
<
<
Oh, this is exactly what I needed.
"Anchor may be convenient, but it also has several drawbacks. First, you can only place three anchors at once. To increase that number, the skill needs to level up. At Level 5, you can place up to ten anchors. At Level 10, there's no limit anymore—so I think your priority should be to level it up for now."
"Second, anchors automatically consume a set amount of SP over time, and you can't disable that function. Third, if an anchor is interfered with externally, it can be destroyed."
Hmm hmm, definitely has some cheap-side downsides.
Is there a workaround?
"Of course," Suzu replied with a confident smile.
I knew Suzu wouldn't let me down.
…
After receiving two new skills, I immediately set out to figure out how to use them to improve my teleportation system. For now, getting [Anchor] to level 5 was my top priority. With only three anchors available at the moment, the teleportation ability was still quite limited. However, I knew this would be a long-term process, requiring patience and intense focus.
I chose a relatively safe floor in the labyrinth—floor 20—to begin my testing. This floor had a simple layout, few monsters, and almost no spatial interference, making it perfect for training.
I heard this from Meradis, by the way.
Speaking of Meradis, she had been a lot quieter lately. She often stayed in one spot, doing something… It looked like she was meditating.
Well, I figured I should focus on my own matters. If she needed help, she would let me know.
Create the first anchor.
I activated the skill.
A soft light flashed at the spot where I stood, and a small circle—barely a meter in radius—appeared beneath my feet. It floated in the air, emitting a faint glow that wasn't too harsh on the eyes. A strange sensation spread through me, as if I'd formed an invisible connection to this location.
<
How interesting.
I could already feel it.
Next, I moved to another corner of the floor, about 200 meters from the first anchor, and set up the second one. The light appeared again, bringing a familiar feeling with it.
<
Finally, I placed the third anchor near the floor's exit. With all three anchor points ready, I began testing teleportation between them using [Teleport].
Let's see…
According to Suzu's instructions, I just needed to stand on one anchor and activate the [Teleport] skill. When I did that, the positions of the other two anchors would automatically appear in my mind, allowing me to choose either destination.
Sounds simple enough.
The first time I activated it, that familiar sense of spatial distortion washed over me, but the SP cost was higher than I expected.
<
The feeling… was hard to describe…
But the SP consumption was a bit much. And on top of that, each anchor consumed 30 SP per hour just to maintain. With three anchors, that's 90 SP gone every hour!
Still way too costly!
After just a few uses, my SP dropped to a dangerous level, forcing me to take a break to recover.
Stay calm…
This is just the beginning!
I told myself that and continued training. Practicing like this also helped increase the proficiency of two other skills: [Auto SP Recovery] and [Endurance].
Alright!
Let's keep going!
Day after day, I repeatedly teleported between the three anchors. My SP would fill up only to be depleted again almost immediately. While waiting for it to regenerate, I also trained a few other skills.
…
<
<
Only one level each, huh…
Looks like there's still a long way to go…
After a few days of familiarization, I decided to try combining [Anchor] with the [Fusion] skill. At first, I wasn't sure how the skill worked, but with Suzu's help, I quickly understood the basic principles.
[Fusion] required a "container" in which to combine skills. In this case, I decided to use the anchor itself.
First, I placed [Teleport] into it so that I could simply touch the anchor to teleport, instead of having to activate two separate skills.
This made a huge difference.
When used separately, [Teleport] and [Anchor] both consumed SP. As a result, one teleportation attempt could cost me nearly 100 SP.
But now, the SP cost per teleport had dropped significantly—to only 50 SP.
If I could combine it with other skills that help recover SP, maintaining and using anchors would no longer be a problem!
I really am a genius.
Time passed, and I continued my daily training, focusing on teleporting between anchors. Each time I teleported, I could feel myself improving, even if just slightly. The SP cost gradually decreased, and the fatigue I felt afterward also lessened.
On the other hand, [Fusion] proved very useful in stabilizing the anchors. Suzu explained that fusion created a stronger link between skills, reducing the risk of anchors being destroyed or affected by environmental interference.
<
And it leveled up.
Let's keep going!
…
Finally, after many days of nonstop effort, I achieved my initial goal.
<
Along with the system's notification, I collapsed on the ground from SP exhaustion.
Not only did I reach level 5 for [Anchor] as planned, but several other skills also leveled up along the way. For example, [Auto SP Recovery] had already evolved to level 9, and [Teleport] jumped three levels in one go, making it the biggest gain from this training session.
[Endurance] also went up one level, [Fusion] increased by two, and most notably, [Parallel Will] leveled up as well.
I think it's because I'd been talking with Suzu a lot recently.
Just that much already took an entire month out of me—it wasn't easy at all.
At least now I know how to level it up!
I'll have to talk with Suzu and Seina even more from now on.
That said, I had no plans to create a third will in the world just yet, since I didn't know what kind of personality might come out of it. Things were fine as they were with Seina and Suzu, so I'd hold off on adding another for now.
Back to the main topic.
With my new skill level, I immediately set up additional anchors on floor 10 to test performance. Teleporting between points was now far smoother, and the SP cost had decreased significantly.
Suzu looked at me and gave a satisfied smile. "I knew it. You always get it done."
"There's still a long road ahead," I replied, though I couldn't hide the joy on my face.
Now that [Anchor] had reached level 5, I could expand the teleportation system to other floors in the labyrinth. However, operating the system efficiently still posed several challenges, especially when it came to coordinating with other skills.
I decided to spend the next few days improving [Fusion], experimenting with additional support skills, and working to further optimize the system.